"We have to dare to think in new ways!"

TUESDAY TALK: Haavard Klemetsen (NOR)

21 January 2014 19:00

A happy Haavard Klemetsen after his TRIPLE podium -

NordicFocus

This could be the best winter ever for Norwegian Haavard Klemetsen who is collecting podium positions and ski jumping wins en masse and will be going to Sochi to represent his country in the ripe old age of 35 next. Fis-ski.com talked the the TRIPLE runner-up about the plans for the Norwegian Olympic team until the Games start, his Seefeld weekend and why it is important keep the hunger for development in the discipline of Nordic Combined.

Would you have expected a great result like your second place in the Nordic Combined TRIPLE when you came to Seefeld this year?

Haavard Klemetsen: I did not expect to be number two in the overall after the weekend. What I did expect was have some good jumps and I also hoped to continue in the right direction in the cross-country part.

Does this second place in the TRIPLE rank among the highlights of your career?

Klemetsen: Absolutely! As there were many of my friends and family in Seefeld, it was a great weekend to perform on a good level. I will certainly remember this nice weekend for a long time. I always have a good time there, but maybe this was my best weekend ever in Seefeld so far.

How was it to compete on this third day on Sunday, could you feel the two previous races during the 15 km?

Klemetsen: I think all of the athletes felt a bit tired on Sunday after the two hard and long days before. Anyhow, when you have a good chance to be on the podium, you find just some extra power somewhere! (laughs)

The events in Chaux-Neuve and Seefeld have both been bigger than ever on the last two weekends. To compete with such a big audience must feel amazing. Do you feel Nordic Combined is in an upward trend this season?

Klemetsen: We have had some good weekends lately, and hopefully it will stay like this for the rest of the season. I think it is important that we dare to think in new ways and that we always keep this hunger for development in our sport. Not only the athletes, or coaches or FIS but also the media and everybody else who is involved. We all want the same thing: to bring good entertainment to the spectators and home to people trough the television!

I think we are on the right track now and everybody is working better together to create a even better product. So hopefully we are on a positive trend… but we can still be better! (laughs)

You and the Norwegian A team will skip the World Cup in Oberstdorf next weekend to prepare for the Olympics. What will be on schedule for you?

Klemetsen: For us, there is a training camp in St. Moritz planned to prepare us so we hopefully can bring some medals home from the Olympics!

Again, the Norwegian team was really strong on this weekend and claimed two podium ranks in the TRIPLE overall. How confident do you feel about the Olympic team event now?

Klemetsen: We have been strong so far this season and we definitely are one of the strongest nations. I am sure we will have a great time in Sochi as well. Hopefully we can return home to Norway with some medals in our luggage.